Editorial: Peaks the cherry on top in Bay

Property in Hawke's Bay is in hot demand.

Finally some good economic news for our province.

At a time when the focus is on the need for our political leaders to show us that they are working together to create an environment to grow our economy, it is fantastic to have some good data coming through for our province.

It seems that the Auckland housing market is stabilising a little, mainly due to the annual winter sales slowdown, more properties coming on to the market and, more importantly for us, Aucklanders looking for a more affordable lifestyle elsewhere.

Auckland home owners do tend to live secure in the knowledge that the value of the land their house is on will increase quite a bit, but with that comes big mortgages and big rates. Also, getting into that market is the big problem.

Realestate.co.nz has revealed that the Bay is firmly in the sights of fed-up Aucklanders, who are showing more interest in our region than any other. In fact, it seems as if Aucklanders are significantly more interested in properties outside their region compared with the same time last year. The number interested in this area has jumped jumped 152.2 per cent compared with May last year.

And why wouldn't they? A gentle Sunday drive out along Waimarama and Kahuranaki roads will reveal rather large houses set on a few acres overlooking at least one of our three peaks going for around the $750,000-$800,000 mark. Compare this with a dinghy three-bedroomed do-up in Henderson, West Auckland recently going for just under $1m. It is not even a choice and the peaks are simply the cherry on the top.